As the holiday season begins, Niki and I wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving. We look forward to welcoming nearly 400 students to our home on Thanksgiving Day again this year, continuing a tradition we began when I became president. This is always a special highlight of our holidays.
President’s Distinguished Lecture series
Earlier this month, we welcomed President Bill Clinton to Bovard Auditorium, as part of our President’s Distinguished Lecture series. President Clinton delivered thought-provoking remarks, and then engaged in a lively one-on-one discussion with Dean James Ellis of our Marshall School of Business. Speaking directly to our students, who filled Bovard to the rafters, President Clinton said, “The next 20 years look good to me. I wish I were your age. I’d love to see what’s going to happen. We’re entering an age of unprecedented discovery.” Last year, as part of this same lecture series, we welcomed President and Mrs. George W. Bush.
Accessibility of higher education
The Washington Post recently published an op-ed I wrote regarding the cost of higher education, and the need for more private universities to offer opportunities to community college students, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. USC admitted 824 of these students last year; however, at most elite, private institutions, fewer than one of every 1,000 students are transfers from a community college. We have found that, at USC, these students graduate at the same rate as those who enter as freshmen, and 44 percent are the first in their families to attend college. This is an important success—both for USC and society—as these graduates often become leaders in their communities.
USC Michelson Center construction begins
USC recently broke ground on the USC Michelson Center for Convergent Bioscience—a significant step forward in our ambition to create a vibrant, interdisciplinary hub for convergent bioscience. Dr. Gary K. Michelson, a retired orthopaedic spinal surgeon who has pioneered more than 955 issued or pending patents worldwide, provided a $50 million gift for the center, which will foster collaborations between our Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences and Viterbi School of Engineering. At the event, Dr. Michelson noted that USC is an engine for entrepreneurs, and predicted that our city will be the next wellspring for biomedical advances. “Los Angeles should become to medical research what Silicon Valley is to information technology,” Dr. Michelson said. “We owe it to the world. We owe it to L.A. We need to invest in this.”
Renowned Scripps scientists join USC
Two recent recruits to USC—Professors Raymond Stevens and Peter Kuhn—have moved their labs from The Scripps Research Institute to the USC Michelson Center, and their recruitment to USC already has received tremendous attention, as they will also bring approximately 50 researchers with them. The Chronicle of Higher Education described them as “game-changing” biomedical scientists, and in the same article, Professor Stevens said he was drawn to USC’s emphasis on convergent bioscience. Professor Kuhn added that at USC, “You work together on incredibly relevant problems to find solutions that are truly meaningful.” The story mentioned that in the past several years, USC has recruited 75 new faculty and institute directors to Keck Medicine of USC.
Meanwhile, in the Times of San Diego, Professor Stevens said USC’s expertise in digital art will prove critical in bridging the scientific and engineering disciplines. Professor Kuhn added, “USC unites the best of the best, who align on the vision of improving human health.”
Iovine and Young Academy receives accolade
The USC Iovine Young Academy—founded with a generous gift from music industry icons Jimmy Iovine and Andre “Dr. Dre” Young—continues to draw praise. The Wall Street Journal recognized the academy founders with the WSJ Magazine 2014 Innovator Awards for Entrepreneurship. The accompanying story describes the USC academy as a “dream factory” dedicated to developing entrepreneurship and innovation in the music industry. In the piece, Mr. Iovine said, “We wanted to build a school that we feel is what the entertainment industry needs right now.” The academy’s executive director, Erica Muhl, said, “There are a lot of other programs around the country that marry business and technology, but they’re all missing that arts and cultural component. The difference with us is we start with the arts part.”
Yours truly,
C. L. Max Nikias
President